a/n: hello welcome to this single dad!luke x cal fic, i blame @blackbutterfliescal but also thank u brooke cause i never would have written it without the encouragement
words: 2.8k
warnings: mentions of pregnancy, food, heartbreak, lots of fluff, dad!sos, uncle!sos
Luke had never been sure how he would make it the first few months without Sophie’s mom around, let alone the first few years. Sophie’s mom had decided 6 months into her pregnancy that she didn’t want to raise the child - she felt no connection to her, nor did she believe she was going to. The idea hurt Luke, but he remained convinced that if she could just look into their baby girl’s eyes for the first time, she would realize; she would feel all the love Luke already felt just from hearing her tiny, rapid heartbeat. But she never did- Once she had been cleared from the hospital, she headed back to their place, packed her things and left.
It had been almost four years since that moment. Luke never thought he’d see the day where he could think of Sophie’s mother and not feel pain or anger, but he did. Sophie made it easier, as every part of her resembled Luke; her blonde curls, her bright, curious blue eyes, even down to the dimples, and her personality. The love Luke had for his daughter oozed out of him every single day, and you could tell how much Sophie loved him, too.
Something else that helped Luke through were his friends, or even more specifically, Calum. The day Sophie’s mom had left, Calum was already there with his bag packed, ready to help him however he could. Calum would stay up late into the night trying to soothe Sophie, while Luke tried to get some semblance of sleep. When Luke was feeding Sophie, Calum would be doing the laundry, knowing that if he didn’t, Luke would wear the same sweats for a week straight.
“No baby wants to smell you wearing those sweats another day,” Calum had argued.
“My baby loves me just fine!”
“I didn’t say she doesn’t love you, I said she wouldn’t want to smell you.”
As Sophie grew, Calum wasn’t around as often. He would come over whenever she or Luke asked, but he wanted to make sure that he gave them their space so that Sophie would learn to be social, branching out to make new friends instead of hiding in his or her dad’s leg when someone tried to talk to her.
One brisk February morning, his phone rang, indicating a FaceTime call. The screen read Luke, but he knew at that hour it had to have been Sophie. His suspicions were confirmed when he accepted the call, the top half of Sophie’s face appearing on the screen.
“Hi munchkin, what are you doin’ up so early?” Calum asked groggily, rubbing his eyes as he sat up in bed.
“I need your hewp,” She whispered into the phone, looking around the room with wide blue eyes.
Calum grew concerned at the word ‘help’, and automatically became more alert, “Is everything okay? Is your dad okay?”
“Yes, yes. I otay. Daddy’s otay. I want you to hewp me make him a Vawentine,” She whispered again.
Calum chuckled softly, running his hand over his face, “You called me at 5:30 to help you make a Valentine? Is this so I’ll get the supplies?” His question was met with a nod, which made him laugh again, “Okay bub, I’ll ask your dad if you can come over to have a playdate with me and Duke and we can make it then, yeah?”
Calum couldn’t see her smile with the way she was holding the phone, but the way her eyes lit up told him that she was smiling, “Okay! Wove you Uncle Cal!”
“Love you too angel, I’ll see you later.”
It truly wasn’t hard to convince Luke to let Sophie have a playdate at Calum’s place, citing he needed to go grocery shopping anyways and it was much easier and much cheaper when Sophie was otherwise occupied.
Calum kept the supplies hidden away until Luke was officially gone, just in case he came into the kitchen and saw the bag of red and pink materials. Everything started off good, Calum was mostly helping her cut shapes so she could make a bunch of hearts for Luke.
“Daddy aways say ask a grown up for hewp cutting,” Sophie explained, gesturing to Calum. He wasn’t sure exactly why she decided to bring that up, but he’d roll with it anyways.
“He’s absolutely right. You don’t want to accidentally cut your little finger, Daddy would need to put a bandage on it and kiss it better.”
Sophie was quiet for a moment, colouring in one of the hearts, “Why wouldn’t you kiss it?”
Calum laughed, reaching over to ruffle her hair, “I could kiss it better, but did you know Daddy’s kisses have healing powers?”
Sophie’s eyes widened, looking over at Calum as if he revealed all of the magicians secrets.
“It’s true! Think about it, when you get a booboo, does your Dad kiss it better?” Calum asked, leaning forward with a smile on his face, only growing bigger when Sophie nodded, “And doesn’t it always feel better right after?”
Sophie’s giggle in response was Calum’s answer, going back to cutting the paper for her. The conversation between them was nonexistent for a few moments until Sophie piped up again.
“Does that mean you have to hewp me with the gwitter?”
Calum looked up, thinking for a moment, “Are you going to try and pick your nose with your hand covered in glitter again?”
Sophie placed a hand on her chest, feigning offense far too well for a three-and-a-half year old, “My nose was itchy!”
Calum laughed softly, grabbing the glitter from the bag so they could get to work finishing the Valentine before Luke got there.
Although Valentines Day was still a couple days away, the moment Luke walked through the door Sophie shoved the Valentine into his hands with a giddy smile on her face.
“What’s this my love?” Luke spoke softly, leaning down to Sophie’s height so he could read it. Calum could tell by the way Luke’s face shifted how much that card meant to him, watching as he hugged Sophie tightly, “Of course I’ll be your Valentine, only if you’ll be mine though.”
Sophie enthusiastically replied with a yes and Luke scooped her up, resting her on his hip.
“Hey Soph, I have a surprise for you back at home but I think Uncle Cal would like to see it too. Do you wanna ask him if he wants to come over for pizza?” Luke stage whispered to her, his eyes darting over to Calum.
The way he looked at Calum always made his heart stop, though he’d never admit it. Calum was likely reading too far into it, but there was always something more to the way Luke spoke to him, and the way he looked at him. A hint of softness, and a sprinkle of mischievous nature.
“Pizza?” Was all Sophie said, extending her hand to Calum as if that was his formal invitation.
“I’d love to join you. Let me just get Duke fed and let out and I’ll let Roy know I’m headed out.”
It wasn’t long before Calum arrived at Luke’s doorstep, ending up meeting the pizza delivery person at the door as well. Paying for the pizza, he stepped inside Luke’s house like he had done many times before.
“Oh honey, I’m home,” Calum teased, being met by a small shriek as Sophie ran towards him at the door, “Y’know Lu, if you wanted me to buy the pizza, you coulda just asked me to pick it up on the way.”
Luke narrowed his eyes at Calum, taking the pizza from him carefully and turning to head towards the kitchen, “You know I never let you pay for food.”
He was right and Calum knew it; Luke always felt like he owed Calum for all he’s done for them- the long nights, the tears (from both Sophie and Luke)- Calum had been there through it all, so now Luke felt one of his only options was to never let him pay for a meal they shared ever again, which Calum of course didn’t agree with.
Looking down, Calum saw silver glitter all in Sophie’s hair, giving her a puzzled look, “This glitter wasn’t there earlier, was it?”
“Don’t ask,” Luke huffed as he brought out three plates with pizza on them, “She decided arts n crafts time wasn’t over.”
Calum chuckled, scooping Sophie up so they could sit on the couch and eat their pizza together. Once dinner was over, Luke showed Calum and Sophie his surprise for her. It was a bookshelf that Luke had built, that was from floor to ceiling and Sophie was absolutely in love. Her love of reading outweighed any other passion she had developed growing up, and Luke slightly blamed (and thanked) Calum for it, as he had always read her to sleep, and as she got older that seemed to be the only thing to calm her. Even if Calum wasn’t there, if Sophie was having a rough night Luke would FaceTime Calum and he would read to her from the stack of childrens books he kept at his house; it never failed to make Sophie fall asleep, and Luke shortly after, leaving Calum to be the one to hang up the call after muttering a quiet ‘Love you’ to the two of them.
“When you’re older, I’ll give you a ladder in here so you can reach the top shelf. I don’t want you getting any bright ideas about trying to fly, ya hear me?” Luke said, pinching Sophie’s cheek as they stood near her new bookshelf.
“But what about the books up thewe,” Sophie argued back, swatting Luke’s hand away.
“Then me or Uncle Cal can reach up and get them for you cause we’re big and tall, yeah?” He scooped her up, lifting her as high as the tallest shelf so she could see, “No books up there right now right?”
“No books.”
“Guess Daddy is gonna have to get you more, huh?” Calum chimed in, tickling Sophie’s belly while Luke still had her held up. Her loud giggle echoed through her room, little legs kicking frantically as she asked him to stop. Calum listened, and once her fit of giggles calmed down, Luke set her down so she could explore the books on her new bookshelf.
“I’m sure she’ll ask you to stay and read to her tonight, just a heads up,” Luke nudged Calum, giving him a smirk, “Plan your escape now.”
“I would never,” Calum gasped, nudging him back, “It’s my favourite thing to do. Don’t know anyone else who cares to listen to me read to them.”
“I do,” Came Luke’s whisper, causing Calum’s heart to skip a beat, “When she’s having a rough night, it’s definitely hard on me too. Your voice is soothing.”
“Is that why you usually fall asleep too?”
“Honestly? Yeah, it feels safe so I just pass right out. Not the best for my neck cause her bed is so small,” Luke chuckled, shifting his gaze to meet Calum’s, “But I love listening to you talk.”
Calum was sure Luke could hear his heart beating rapidly now, and he may have kissed him if his daughter wasn’t standing right there; judging by the way Luke’s eyes darted to Calum’s lips, he may have returned the favor, but they were pulled from their world by a loud yawn falling from Sophie’s lips.
“Getting tired, my love?” Luke asked, turning his attention to his daughter. When she nodded, Luke cooed softly, wrapping his arms around her and letting her bury her face in his shoulder, “Let’s get your jammies on, okay?”
“Will Uncle Cal wead me stowy?” She asked in a quiet voice, big blue eyes looking up at Calum.
“You know the answer is always yes angel. I’ll be just outside, once you’re settled in your jammies you can pick a story.”
Sophie called Calum back in once she had gotten changed, and Luke made sure to tuck her in and give her a kiss, letting Calum take over with the storytime. Before Calum dove into the book, Sophie pulled a folded red piece of paper out of her pocket.
“What’s this, lovie?” He asked with a smile, taking it as she handed it to him.
“You give to Daddy,” She said, encouraging him to unfold it.
“Didn’t your Daddy already get a Valentine from you?” Calum chuckled, unfolding the paper to see it covered with silver glitter and shakily drawn hearts. The silver glitter in her hair makes sense now.
“You give to him,” She repeated, pointing at the ‘to:’ and ‘from:’ written in Luke’s handwriting left blank. Luke must have assumed Sophie wanted to give it to him, so he wrote on the card for her and was going to let her attempt to write Calum’s name.
“Okay, okay,” he laughed softly, pressing a kiss to her forehead and setting it on her bedside table, “I promise I will.”
Calum proceeded to read to her until she fell asleep, which wasn’t very long after he started the book. He smiled down at her when he realized she was fully asleep, pressing one more gentle kiss to the top of her head before he slid off the bed, carefully placing the book on the shelf. Once he dimmed her light into the nightlight she liked, he picked up the Valentine and headed out of her room and down the hall to where Luke’s room was.
“Hey,” Calum called out softly, “She’s out, I dimmed her lights and left her door cracked just in case. I should head out before it gets too late.”
Luke said a small thank you, before calling out to Calum again, “Tell me a story.”
With a small smile on his lips, Calum leaned against the doorframe, “Sophie really is your twin huh.”
Luke pulled the covers back, patting the spot next to him so Calum could crawl in, “What’s so bad about that? Aren’t I a delight?”
“You’re somethin’ alright.”
Calum just barely caught the pillow that was thrown at him, bursting out in a fit of laughter as he did so. Crawling into the spot next to Luke, he laid on his side facing him and propped himself up on his elbow, “What kind of story do you wanna hear?”
“It’s almost Valentine’s Day, tell me a love story.”
Calum thought for a moment, an idea coming to mind as he chewed on his lower lip, “Once upon a time there were two boys… Well, four technically, but this story is about the two of them,” he began nervously. “They formed a band with two of their other friends, and got to tour the world, seeing the sights.”
“Sounds like a fun story.”
“Sh, Sophie never interrupts,” He scolded, poking his finger against Luke’s chest, “As they got older, and became men, they all began to find love. The two band members found forever love, while the two men in our story only found temporary love. That is, until an angel arrived, and she showed the men that forever love isn’t always romantic. Time went on, and the angel no longer needed one of the men as much, so he carried on with his life outside of them. But one thing he always thought about was the man caring for the angel, and how much he missed spending every waking hour with him, and the angel too. Slowly, he began to realize that his forever love was right there all along, they both were just caught up in protecting the angel that he was too blind to see it.”
Luke wasn’t breathing, and Calum was nervous that he was taking it the wrong way, until he met Luke’s eyes and saw them brimming with tears, then he really knew he fucked up. “I’m sorry, fuck Luke I’m sorry. I should have just told you, not like this-”
He was cut off by Luke’s lips meeting his in a sweet, delicate kiss, “Shut up. What happens next in the story,” he whispered against Calum’s lips.
“Once they admitted their feelings, they shared a kiss… and lived happily ever after,” Calum smiled, pressing another chaste kiss to Luke’s lips, “I love you. I think I always have, but I wanted to give you space to heal.”
“Both you and Sophie healed me. I’ve known for a long time I loved you, but I was scared that I was just in love with the idea of having someone else around. That’s not the case, though, because I want you, as well as want you to be around. And I’m sure Sophie wouldn’t complain about you being around longer.”
Pulling the folded Valentine out of his pocket, he handed it to Luke, “Wanna be my Valentine?”
Luke’s mouth fell open, a laugh escaping his lips, “I thought she wanted to give that to you!”
Calum shook his head, “Nope. She wanted me to give it to you.”
Luke shook his head, squeezing Calum closer, “I’ll be yours if you be mine.”
Oh I'd love to read cal+yn being the fun uncle+aunt to the Irwin kids tehehe
i’m not sure if you mean irwin kids from my dad!ash universe but that’s what I’m going to go with! This will be with Fletcher, Henry and Ivy :) baby Mylo hasn’t arrived yet in this blurb
donate to my ko-fi here :) –for a trip to disney world I’m going on in March!
• • • •
You and Calum were so excited to watch Fletcher, Henry and Ivy for the day while Ashton and his wife spent some alone time together.
“Unca Cal!” Fletcher and Henry exclaim together when they were dropped off running to Cal’s arms. He lifts them both up easily and little Ivy runs to you with an adorable smile.
“Hi little princess,” you greet her and she giggles at the nickname.
“They’ve got their suits on already,” Ashton says setting their bags down. Duke sniffs at them. “Put extra sunblock on them and Ivy’s hat is in her bag.”
“Got it,” Calum nods grinning at his nephews.
“Are we swimming today?” Fletcher asks.
“You bet we are, Fletch and guess what we’re having for lunch?”
“Hot dogs?!”
“Hot dogs!” Calum screams excitedly and the two boys laugh.
Ivy shrieks in your arms clapping her hands.
“They’re funny aren’t they?” you laugh tickling her belly.
“Funny,” she mimics.
Ashton and his wife kiss their kids then are out the door.
Calum sets the boys down and Fletcher goes to their bags grabbing towels and Ivy’s hat.
“Here Henny, give this to auntie Y/N,” Fletcher instructs holding out the sunscreen.
“You get more and more like your dad everyday, Fletch,” Calum chuckles. “Stand in a line and auntie Y/N and I will put sunscreen on you.”
The three little ones stand in a perfect line as you rub the sunscreen on them, making sure to get their noses and ears. Ivy hangs onto your leg as you rub Henry’s face and Calum lets Fletcher put sunscreen on his face.
Once they’re all rubbed in, you head out in the backyard where the pool is. You wet the water wings for Henry and slip them on his arms. You get in first with Ivy’s little floaty and place her tiny legs in the holes, she’s grinning at the feel of the water.
“I wanna jump in!” Fletcher shouts.
“Let me get in and I’ll catch you,” Calum says. He stands next to you, squeezes your butt cheek as he passes and stands in front of Fletcher. “Okay Fletch, jump!”
Fletcher lets out a wild yelp and jumps into Calum’s arms who catches him.
“Me next! Me next!” Henry doggy paddles to the steps running to where his brother stood.
“Go Henny, go!” Fletcher shouts.
“I got you buddy,” Calum grins holding his hands out.
Henry hesitates before jumping into his uncles arms, laughing as he does.
When it gets to be about lunchtime, you all get out to dry off so Calum can cook them on the grill. The boys chatter to Calum about things little boys do, and Ivy starts to get sleepy in your lap.
The rest of the afternoon is spent with the boys playing in the water while you watched with a sleeping Ivy on your chest. Her soft snores melt your heart and the sounds of Calum splashing and having fun with his nephews fill your ears.
When Ashton and his wife come to collect, all three are still tuckered out.
ummmm hello ha! so i have a lil something inspired by the conversation i had with my friend jules, so everyone say THANK YOU JULES!!! this is rly soft n cute and i don’t have a playlist but one song i do reference in here is Dive by Ed Sheeran so... do with that what you want.
pairing: readerxcal
word count: 2.2k
summary: you and calum agree to babysit mali’s daughters for the weekend
rating: PG
warnings: super soft and super cute uncle!cal
“So,” Calum says, approaching you as you sit on the couch of your shared home. “Mali called, and she’s going to San Francisco for the weekend, and needs someone to watch the kids.”
You raise your eyebrows, looking at your boyfriend cautiously.
“So are you going to watch them?” You ask. He plops down next to you and rests his head in your lap.
“We are going to watch them.” Calum smirks, looking up at you. “She’ll be here in about fifteen minutes.”
“You’re a sucker for those kids, huh?” You chuckle, running your fingers through his hair.
You look down at him, his eyes closed and a smile forming across his lips. “I love them more than I love y–” He cuts himself off before finishing that sentence.
You chuckle and bend down, kissing his lips before getting off of the couch and begin cleaning the house.
Calum gets up a few moments later, helping you clean as well, making sure Mali’s youngest wouldn’t be able to get into anything she shouldn’t.
Duke lays in his spot near the back door where the sun hits just right, careful not to get in the way of the two of you, as you clean.
“They’re here!” Calum exclaims, the excitement in his voice making you excited.
Duke begins barking like crazy and Calum opens the door, letting Duke race to Mali’s car, greeting his sister and her two daughters with a bunch of licks.
“Duke!” Mali’s oldest, Callie, named after Calum, screeches as she unbuckles her car seat and leaps out of the car, hugging her uncles dog.
“No love for your uncle?” Calum pouts, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at Callie.
“Uncle Cal!” Callie exclaims, jumping up and running into her uncles arms.
You walk over to Mali, helping her grab her youngest, Bennett, who you lovingly call Bennie, and walking them into the house to get settled in.
“Thank you guys so much for watching them this weekend.” Mali states, setting the girls stuff down in our guest room.
“It’s no problem, you know Cal and I are always a phone call away.” You smile.
“I’m so grateful he has you, you know. You two are good for each other.” Mali remarks, and you feel yourself blush a bit.
“I’m grateful for him too.” You smile.
You and Mali walk out of the room, greeted by the sight of Calum and Callie playing the floor is lava – the two of them jumping on the love seats.
“Callie,” Mali says, looking at the small brunette. “You be good okay? If you need anything, have Uncle Cal or Aunt (y/n) call me, okay?”
“Yes Mum.” Callie draws on.
Mali gives Callie and Bennett a kiss on the cheek, and Calum pauses the game of the floor is lava to hug his sister goodbye.
“Don’t worry, we’ll take good care of them, Mal.” Calum reassures his sister.
“No one will end up in the hospital.” You chime in, making the three of you giggle.
“Thank you. I love you both. Call me if you need anything.” Mali says, giving you a hug and a kiss on the cheek.
The four of you see Mali out to her uber, waving goodbye until she’s out of eye sight.
“So, Lil Cal, what do you want to do?” Calum asks, looking at Callie.
“Can we have a pizza party?” Callie asks, her eyes lighting up with excitement.
“Oh, we can have more than just a pizza party. What if we go to Planet Pizza!” Calum exclaims. “So much pizza! So many games! So much fun for the four of us to have!” He’s tickling Callie’s sides and she’s shrieking with joy.
“And snow cones?!”
“So many snow cones you’re gonna be sick.”
“Cool.” Callie mimics Calum’s demeanor when she says that, the two of them so alike that if you didn’t know any better, you’d assume they were father and daughter.
“What do you say, Bennie? Do you want to go to Planet Pizza?” Calum asks, taking the eleven month old from your arms and kissing her forehead. She coos and smiles at him before you go get the car keys for Mali’s car, and you head to Planet Pizza.
*
“How long is Mummy going to be away?” Callie asks you, as the four of you go get your snow cones from the stand.
“You’re going to be with us the entire weekend.” You smile, looking down at her.
She’s a spitting image of her mother – same brown eyes, same nose and cheekbones.
“I’m so excited!” Callie remarks, grabbing on to my hands.
You order your snow cones and take them back to the table, Bennie in her high chair, Callie next to you, and Calum all by himself on the other side.
“Lil Cal, why are you leaving me all by myself!” Calum asks before taking a bite of his snow cone.
“Because me and (y/n) are best friends!” Callie responds, sticking her tongue out.
“I’m… So… Hurt… How… Could… This… Happen…” Calum feigns heartbreak, staring at your niece sitting next to you.
“Aunt (y/n), Uncle Cal is being dramatic again.” Callie giggles, cuddling into you and you roll your eyes as you look at your boyfriend.
“Me? Dramatic? Lil Cal, you’re the one being dramatic.” Calum retorts, making eye contact with the four year old.
Callie giggles and finishes her snow cone before the four of us head back to our car.
*
“Bennie, leave me alone!” Callie screams from the living room.
Calum’s in the bathroom drawing a bath for the girls, and you’re keeping an eye on them as you sit on the couch.
Bennie is learning how to walk, and she’s grabbing on to Callie’s shirt for balance, but Callie is not having it.
“Bennie, please? We can hold hands instead.” Callie sighs, pleading with the ten month old. “Come on, I’ll show you how to walk.”
Callie grabs Bennie’s hand, and you watch as the two of them begin taking slow steps with one another. You can’t help but grab your phone to record the moment, it’s just too cute to ignore.
“Girls, are you ready for your bath?” Calum asks from the bathroom, and you follow the two girls into the bathroom where Calum is waiting for them.
Calum made sure there were extra bubbles, but not too many, because Bennie gets scared when there’s too many, you and Calum learned the hard way.
You take a seat on the bathroom counter and watch as Calum and the girls play with the bubbles.
Callie keeps taking bubbles and placing them under Calum’s chin, making him have a bubble beard, and then she places some on Bennie’s head, giving her a bubble hat.
“Bennie look!” Callie exclaims, and once she’s got her younger sisters attention, you watch as Callie blows bubbles out of her hand in the opposite direction, as to not get the bubbles in the baby’s face.
You can hear Calum quietly humming along to a song as he clears the bubbles off of his chin before he begins to wash Bennie’s hair for her.
“I like it when you sing, Uncle Cal.” Callie smiles as she puts the conditioner in her hair. “You sound like an angel.”
“I bet you say that to everyone who sings in front of you.” Calum chuckles, rinsing Bennie’s hair.
“Callie’s got a point, babe.” You tell him.
Calum looks over at you and smiles one of his genuine smiles – the big one where his eyes crinkle, and he blows you a kiss. “I love you.”
You catch the kiss and place it on your cheek. “I love you most.”
Once Calum is done rinsing Bennie off, you wrap her in a towel and give her a kiss on the nose, causing her to laugh and smile. Calum also grabs Callie and wraps her in a towel, picking her up and holding her.
“We got to do the ritual.” Calum tells you, and the two of them stop in front of the mirror, looking at their reflections. “Play the song, babe.”
You grab your phone and begin playing Dive by Ed Sheeran, and the two of them begin their little routine; swaying to the beat and taking turns singing the words out loud.
Calum looks into Callie’s eyes, singing along, “I could live, I could die, hanging by the words you say”, and you feel your heart melt as she giggles and throws her head back.
He then walks over to you, singing the song to you and making sure you join in.
“So don’t call me baby unless you mean it. Don’t tell me you need me, if you don’t believe it.”
You being to sing along as well, making eye contact with your boyfriend from time to time, singing to Bennie in your arms and making faces at Callie as you sing.
The bathroom is filled with voices, Bennie trying to sing along with you guys, causing you and Calum to laugh at her cuteness.
When the song ends, you take the girls into the guest room and get them ready for bed. They’re going to sleep in the bed with you and Calum, that happens every time the girls come over, but the two of you wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I’m going to make Bennie’s bottle, I’ll be right back.” Calum states, kissing your forehead.
You and the girls walk into your shared bedroom with Calum, Callie laying next to you and Bennie sitting up in your lap.
“Aunt (y/n)?” Callie asks, gaining your attention. “When are you and Uncle Calum going to have a baby?”
The question takes you by surprise, Callie had never asked this question before, to you at least.
“What made you ask a question like that, Lil Cal?” You ask her, raising your eyebrows.
“Well, I have cousins on my dad’s side, but none on mummy’s. I know Uncle Cal loves me and Bennie a lot, but I also think he wants his own baby.”
You give your niece a kiss on the head and sigh. “I don’t know Callie. When the time is right, we’ll have one, and you and Bennie will be the first to know!”
“Yes!” Callie cheers, wrapping her arms around you in a hug.
Calum walks back into the room and takes Bennie so you can get changed into your PJ’s. When you walk back out, you see Callie holding Bennie’s hands and Calum sitting on the floor near your closet, holding Bennie’s bottle.
“What’s going on?” You ask, grabbing your phone and sitting next to Calum.
“We’re going to see if she can walk to you!” Callie exclaims.
“Okay, baby B, come over here!” Calum says.
Callie lets go of Bennie’s hand as you press record, and you see her begin to take her steps.
“Come on, Bennie! Go, go, go!” Callie cheers her sister on, watching as she takes little steps towards you and Calum.
A few seconds later, Bennie is almost to Calum, holding her arms out to steady herself as she walks three more steps to her uncle, and then collapses in his lap.
Calum turns to face you and you see the tears in his eyes – he’s beaming at the fact that you’ve both witnessed not only Callie’s first steps, but Bennie’s too, and the joy he’s feeling right now could only be compared to how he felt when the band won their Grammy.
“You did it, Bennie!” Calum says, giving his niece a kiss on the cheek.
Duke comes running into the room and begins licking Callie’s arm as she sits down, and Callie begins telling him all about Bennie’s first steps.
You and Calum stand up, and Calum crawls into the bed. Callie crawls into the spot next to him on the edge, Bennie is propped up on his arm and drinking her bottle, and Duke gets up and rests near Calum’s feet.
You walk to the bathroom to take off your makeup, thinking about how lucky you are to be with someone who loves his nieces so much.
Walking out and looking at the bed, Callie is cuddled up into Calum’s side and already fast asleep, and Bennie is laying on his chest, her bottle resting between Calum’s armpit.
You walk over to the bed and hop in and turn on Trolls (it’s the girls’ favorite movie to fall asleep to), and cuddle into the Calum once you move the bottle on to the stand next to your bed.
“You’re so good with them.” You mumble, kissing Calum’s cheek.
“Yeah?” Calum smiles, looking over at you.
“Oh, definitely.” You say. You quiet your voice down to a whisper. “It’s kind of sexy. You know…”
Calum raises an eyebrow at you, curious to know where this conversation is going. “What are you thinking?”
“It’d be even sexier if you were a dad instead of just an uncle.” You smirk.
“How about we make that fantasy a reality once the girls leave huh?” Calum says.
“Good.” You say.
You kiss his face all over before cuddling into him, resting your arm over Bennie and holding Callie’s hand, falling into sleep easily.
Calum takes one last look around him and smiles, falling asleep surrounded by his favorite girls.
a/n: hello i am back with more uncle!calum !!! as always, thank you to miss jules for being a main inspiration, and thank you to norma as well for also semi inspiring this little imagine/one shot/blurb whatever you want to call it. i hope you enjoy!!
summary: calum babysits callie for the first time ever, by himself, until he calls you for help
word count: 1.5k
pairing: readerxcalum (kinda, if you could call it that)
rating: PG
warnings: soft. cute. uncle!cal.
The two girls Calum loved most in his life were his sister, Mali-Koa, and his Mum. His entire life, those were the two women who kept him grounded and made sure he’d always kept his head on straight when making any kind of decision.
Everything changed the day that Callie was born. At six pounds, seven ounces, his niece was the one girl he’d make sure he’d never disappoint, never hurt, and would always be there for.
Calum, being Calum, had rarely held newborns in the past, but his face lit up when his sister handed him his niece.
“What’s her name?” Calum asked his sister, his eyes never leaving the newborn baby in his arms.
“Callie Joy.” Mali smiles, looking down at his daughter.
“Callie, as in…” His eyes were beginning to tear up.
“As in Calum, yes.” Mali states. “Joy is named after Mum.”
Calum didn’t know what to think. He’d always heard jokes about his sister naming her future children after him, but he didn’t think she was one hundred percent serious. It was touching, that his sister would even consider naming her children after her brother, but the fact that she actually did it, makes his heart even happier.
“Callie Joy. A beautiful name for a beautiful girl.” Calum smiles, looking down at the baby in his arms.
“She looks like Rob,” Mali chuckles. “I carried her for nine months for her to look like her father.”
“I think she looks just like you.” Calum says, his eyes trained on the little girl in his arms. “Spitting image, really.”
“You’re just flattering me.” Mali chuckles.
Callie begins to cry in Calum’s arms, and he immediately looks up at his sister for help.
“I think I broke her.” Calum says. “Mali I broke your baby.”
“No, she probably needs a diaper change or is hungry.” Mali giggles, taking the baby from her brothers arms.
Mali uncovers her daughter and checks her diaper, but realises she’s just hungry and ends up leaning back to feed her.
Calum turns away to give his sister a bit of privacy as she feeds her daughter.
“You can still look at me you know. I know you’ve seen a boob before.” Mali chuckles. “It’s also not like I’m trying to flash you.”
“It’s just weird. Seeing you be a mum and all that.” Calum says, looking at his sister.
Mali’s looking down at Callie and rubbing the side of her head, gently singing to her as she feeds.
Calum takes in the moment; his sister is actually a mum of her own. It’s not just Mali-Koa and Calum anymore, now it’s Mali-Koa, her daughter, Callie, and Calum.
“I think I’m going to head home.” Calum states. “I’ll swing by tomorrow?”
Mali looks up and smiles at her brother. “Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow. I love you.”
9 months later
9 months ago was the best day of Calum’s life.
Tonight?
The worst.
He’d taken Callie for the night so Mali could finally get a full nights rest for the first time since Callie was born.
Sure, baby sitting and having Callie all day was fun. But Calum got to give her back and have her parents take care of her all night.
Just having gotten off tour, Calum missed his niece dearly.
Of course, he’d gotten the daily FaceTime calls from Mali about Duke, and every other FaceTime, he’d see his niece, who instead of looking like her parents, looked exactly like him.
Now that he’s back, he was determined to spend as much time with Callie as much as possible.
For the first few hours, Callie and Calum were good. They watched Moana, Callie drank her bottle, and the two of them fell asleep, snuggled in blankets, together on the couch, while Trolls played in the background. Everything was seemingly fine until Callie started crying.
Immediately, Calum’s eyes shot wide open and he sat up, holding the baby to his chest as he did so, so she wouldn’t fall.
He checks her diaper and changes it, and then warms up one of the bottles from the fridge and tries feeding his niece, but she refuses the bottle.
“Oh please, Lil Cal, stop crying. It’s okay.” Calum assures, rocking the baby in his arms.
Callie won’t stop crying, and he does everything he can to try and calm her down.
He grabs the guitar and starts strumming a short tune. He tries feeding her. Tries wrapping her up in a blanket and laying him down on his chest. He tries putting her in her car seat and rocking her back and forth, but even that doesn’t work.
As a last resort, he calls you.
You and Calum aren’t really close, nor have you even known him for that long.
In fact, you’d only ever hung out with him twice, and the first time was because he brought you home from the club. But he knew that you worked at a daycare, and that was enough of an excuse to call you up.
“Hello?” You answer. Your voice is groggy, and you’re shocked you’ve been woken up at two in the morning by someone you hardly know.
“Hey, it’s Calum.” Calum says. He looks around the room. “Um, I kind of need your help.”
“Calum, it’s two in the morning. I’m not coming over so you can fu–” you begin.
“It’s not that.” Calum cuts you off quickly. “I have my niece tonight and I can’t get her to stop crying. It’s Mali’s first night of being alone without the baby and I don’t want to wake her up.”
You’ve never heard Calum sound so desperate, it almost makes your heart break. You can hear the baby in the background, and you look around the room, looking for an excuse not to go.
“Calum… I don’t think…”
“Please. I’ll do anything. I just don’t know what to do when it comes to babies.”
You sigh and move the blankets from your legs. “I’ll be over there in ten. Leave the door unlocked.”
“Sure thing.”
Ten minutes later, you find yourself pulling up to Calum’s house and walking through the front door. His house looks normal, but the faint cry of a baby makes its way through the house. You sigh and follow the cries to Calum’s room, where he’s sitting on the bed with his dog, Duke, and a baby in his arms.
“You’re here!” He cries, a brief look of relief splashing across his face. “Thank you for coming, I really appreciate it.”
You nod and smile, looking at the boy and the baby in front of you. “Let me see her.”
Calum easily hands you his niece and you hold her to your chest for a few minutes, but she doesn’t stop crying.
“Hey, baby girl, what’s wrong? What’s got you frazzled?” You say, looking at the small baby in front of you.
If you didn’t know any better, you’d say she was Calum’s daughter just by the looks of it.
Callie keeps crying in response, but her cries are no longer screams, just soft cries in response to your voice.
“You know, you’re giving your uncle here a scare. Between you and me, I just think he’s afraid he might accidentally hurt you.” You say, unbuttoning her outfit. “Oh no, Miss Callie!” You say, looking down at her diaper. “That looks a little full, doesn’t it!”
Calum hands you a diaper, and you begin to change her.
“Her diaper was fine a few minutes ago…” Calum mumbles.
You give him a sympathetic smile before turning back to look at the baby laying between your legs.
“Here, I bet that’s all better.” You say, wiping her clean and changing her diaper. “I bet you’re hungry after all that crying too.”
You hand Callie back to Calum and stand up before walking to the kitchen to grab a bottle from the fridge. You warm it up and head back into Calum’s room, handing the bottle to him.
Calum sticks the bottle in Callie’s mouth and looks at you. “Thank you for coming. I wasn’t sure I would’ve been able to handle her cries for much longer.”
“It was just a dirty diaper, it’s no big deal.” You mumble.
“I changed her diaper when she first started crying. She just hasn’t stopped til you came over.” Calum admits.
You look at him – he’s wearing sweats and is shirtless, and he’s holding Callie close to his chest as he’s feeding her the bottle.
“What can I say, I’m the baby whisperer.” You giggle, looking at him. “I think I’m going to go now, I’ve got work in the morning. I pass on the baby whisperer dust to you.”
“Thank you again, (y/n),” Calum states. “I really appreciate you coming to help me. I owe you one.”
“Hey, I’m here to help. Goodnight Calum.” You say, walking out the door.
Calum sighs once he hears the front door shut behind you and looks down at his niece.
“Well, Callie Joy, it’s just you and me for the rest of the night. I promise I’ll be better.”
The nine month old opens her eyes for a slight second to look at her uncle, causing him to smile.
“I love you, Lil Cal. You’re my favorite girl in the world.”
